Two in five New Zealanders misinterpret at least one of the two leading date labels, fuelling avoidable waste.
Confusion over food date labels has sent millions of dollars’ worth of perfectly good food to the bin every year in New Zealand.
The Understanding Food Labels study, recently conducted by Love Food Hate Waste NZ and Perceptive, revealed that over a third of New Zealanders misinterpret at least one of the two leading date labels (Best Before or Use By), resulting in safe food being unnecessarily thrown away.
With New Zealand households wasting an estimated NZD three billion worth of food each year, much of it still edible, the cost to families is hundreds of dollars annually, alongside a significant environmental impact.
While 80 percent of New Zealanders said they use some form of sensory checks (look, smell, taste) to judge food at home, almost as common as checking labels (83 percent), confidence is uneven.
Nearly half of all New Zealanders are not confident in using sensory checks to judge food at home, and this confidence is lowest among young people aged 18 to 34 compared with those aged 55 and over. 18 percent of 18 to 34-year-olds said throwing food away without checking was just a habit, and the top barrier is concern about food safety.
“These findings show a clear gap between people's understanding of date labels and how they actually behave,” said Sophie Wolland, Programme Manager at Love Food Hate Waste NZ.
“Best Before dates are meant to guide us, not trick us into binning perfectly good food. By helping people feel confident with simple sensory checks, we can save families money and reduce waste, while keeping everyone safe.”
To tackle the confusion, Love Food Hate Waste NZ has launched the Great Date Debate Campaign, designed to help households decode labels, trust their senses, and save good food.
“Our research shows many Kiwis want clear, practical guidance on what to do when food is past its Best Before date. By showing people how to use their senses and building confidence in this everyday superpower, we can cut food waste, keep households safe, and put money back in people’s pockets.”
The research also showed that New Zealanders placed the most trust in health authorities (54 percent) and scientists (51 percent) when it came to food safety. LFHWNZ have worked alongside these experts to ensure campaign messages are safe, evidence-based, and effective.
